The Long Journey
by Steel Lycan
Summary: Everyone knows what the Summoning Ritual is. Louise casts spell, explosion occurs, something appears. But what if Louise screws up twice over and teleports herself somewhere else, completely off the charts? *on hiatus, updates will be sporadic*
1. Prologue: Random Mass Displacement

**Prologue: Random Mass Displacement**

**Disclaimer: The Familiar of Zero and all other references aren't mine.**

A beautiful day has once again started in the fertile lands of Halkeginia. The bathing light of the sun shone down from the classroom window, and with the fresh morning air somehow a certain pink-haired student always maintains to be dead serious about her studies. While this is often the case today is an exception.

"Louise, are you…okay?" The boy beside her asked, slightly creeped out by his seatmate's perpetual smile. Indeed, Louise Francoise Lu Blanc De La Valliere is pretty sure that she will summon a cool, awesome spirit that will put that slutty Kirche's familiar to shame. She giggled a bit to herself as she patted the strange bracer she wore on her left hand, patting it gently. She bought it from a strange totally-not-shady vendor at the local village nearby. From what the man told her, it is supposed to boost her "magical capabilities" to the level of a triangle-class mage. With such a sweet deal of the bracer for only 10 gold, she immediately bought it. Such is the wonder of—

"Miss Valliere!" Miss Chevreuse called out.

"Ah, yes!" Snapped out of her stupor, Louise continued to study diligently in class.

**Somewhere else, in a different dimension…**

"…enrollment is on the twenty-third. Welcome to college, young man." The receptionist said, shaking a certain teen's hand. Said teen is wearing khaki cargo shorts, checkered polo shirt with a white t-shirt underneath. As he bowed slightly and left the room, another teenager wearing a yellow shirt and blue pants greeted him.

"Done already?" Angelo asked as he looked at the statue of Saint Paul on display.

"Yep. So, where to now?" Joshua replied.

"Where else?" The other person replied, making gestures of rapidly typing on a keyboard. As they were both grinning while walking down the stairs, suddenly a green circle appeared in front of them. What's even weirder is that it seems to fade in and out of existence.

"You see what I'm seein'?" Joshua said as he stared at the portal-like…thing. "Hmm, pretty sure I'm not dreaming…"

"Oh, see?! I told you my awesomeness will bring us to Skyrim! I'll be an epic Nord!" His companion exclaimed happily, touching the green circle.

"The hell you doAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH—"

XXX

"...eh?" Joshua rose, dazed in the sudden pull of the circle, to which he confirmed as a portal. As he looked around, it looked like he was in the center of the universe. He can see the stars, the nebulae and all the constellations from where he was standing in full view. While he was taking in the grandiose of such a sight, he heard a small murmur beside him.

"Ow, my foot…" His companion, Angelo, finally awoke from his stupor, clutching his head.

"Huh…you say your foot hurts and yet you massage your head? Pffft…" Joshua chuckled as he lent a hand. The still half-disoriented friend stood up with his friend's help as he took in the sights as well.

"Ohhh…looks awesome…" He said in marvel of the universe. Suddenly, everything seems to zoom and just like that, all was replaced with a different view. They were suddenly in a large room with high-end furniture with a clean white scheme. The view outside is that of a beautiful meadow with various creatures going about, living out their blissful, carefree lives. In the middle of the room, there is a white glass table, surrounded by three white chairs designed with red cusions. On one of them sat a person looking around his forties, wearing a simple clean white robe with a blood-red cloth hanging from his shoulder to his waist in a diagonal fashion. Both his face and disposition was welcoming, yet both teenagers can't help but feel nervous. The man smiled and beckoned them to come closer.

"I believe you two know who I am?" He smiled.

"…God?" The two guessed. The man just chuckled and smiled.

"Do you remember what happened to you?" He asked.

"I remember a circle suddenly appearing in front of us and Angelo saying something about becoming a Nord." Joshua replied. He still wonders just who this person is and where the hell are they.

"Hahaha…Interesting as usual. Anyway, I just came to tell you that I'm going to let you be borrowed by this…maniac for a while." As he said that, another figure came in. He was clad in a long violet robe with a golden trim, laced with various crushed crystals that reflected a rainbow when it gets hit by sunlight. He was wearing a blue and green suit, matched with blue trousers. Rather sticking out of place however is his footwear, which consists of combat boots. His hair was quite disheveled, and his face revealed an exasperated expression. His outfit may be that of a king's, yet his disposition is that of a tyrant's.

"What now…?" The new person sighed.

"This is the one they call Brimir. A mage of…questionable rationale." The person coughed as he turned away.

"What was that, Old Man?!" Brimir's face cracked as the other person tried to contain his laughter. The two teenagers never felt more confused in their entire lives. Are all supernatural entities like this? They're far more human than they first thought if that's the case.

"Ah…anyways, you are going to this mage's dimension and have an adventure." He replied.

"…" Quite differently from Brimir's expectation that the two will be jumping in glee, instead they were just there, sitting awkwardly in dead silence. Both are not sure as to whether be excited or not. The man sweat-dropped in lieu with Brimir's jaw. After a few moments though, Angelo celebrated since he thought that he can now show the world his "hammering prowess".

"Don't worry, it's not so different as this non-magic Earth. There's a few mythical beasts and races here and there but otherwise? Not so much. There's just one thing though that separates that world from here. Now, off you go before a certain madman devours you." He smiled and waved as the surroundings zoomed out again. Brimir tried to retort something vile, but they didn't hear it anyway because as they zoomed out, they lost their consciousness as well.

**Back in Halkeginia…**

"Ah Miss Zelpusto, very impressive! In the end, you were able to summon a magnificent Salamander after all." Mr. Colbert congratulated as the student he was talking to patted her familiar.

"It is a familiar that suits my nickname, The Feveret Kirche…" She smiled.

"Eh…have we gone through everyone?" Colbert asked, his bald head shining like the sun.

"No, not yet." Kirche replied. "Miss Valliere is left." She smiled again in a playful manner as the mentioned pinkhead frowned. At the sound of Colbert mentioning Louise to come forward, everyone formed in a circle around her, murmuring in their usual mockery.

"Hey Louise. You said last night that you can summon something greater than this boy, right?" Kirche quipped as she enjoyed her pseudo-rival's dismay.

"Naturally." Louise bluffed back, not being entirely sure that the bracer she bought will really work. Still, she kept her air of false confidence on lest her charade be exposed. She then started chanting and waving her wand in the air. As she did so, the bracer glowed, specifically the runes on it.

"…and follow my guidance!" As Louise finished, an explosion predictably popped. Smoke filled the area, allowing two completely confused teenagers to fall down unnoticed, albeit somewhat painfully. When the smoke cleared, nothing was in front of Louise, so everybody assumed that she didn't summon anything, completely oblivious to the two teenagers crawling away.

"As expected of Louise!"

"The Zero summoned nothing again! You never fail to impress us, Louise!"

While the mocking continued, a certain blue-haired mage finally noticed the two crawling teenagers, now about to take a break for the gate. Just like that, Louise's bracer, which is still glowing and now shaking, forced itself out of her arm and into the air.

"Ow! Hey, my bracer!" Louise jumped, trying to catch it, but to no avail. It then spun faster and faster and faster, with the light increasing in luminosity with each rotation, then suddenly it exploded, a golden light enveloping everyone. In the middle of the explosion however is a golden portal. Immediately, it suddenly tried to pull everything in the vicinity like a black hole.

"Ahhhhhhh!" Most screamed as they tried to grab on to something. Louise, however, wasn't able to do so and went flying in, her cries lost to the winds. Kirche tried to reach Louise, but lost her footing and went flying as well. Tabitha went flying as well when Malicorne was rushing away. The two teenagers just looked each other before flying in as well, unaware of them dragging Guiche in as well. Two more figures got sucked in, but nobody was able to identify them for they went through the portal too quickly. Professor Colbert tried to remedy the situation, but he was too late as the portal imploded upon itself, exploding in a sea of light. When the luminescence faded, the eight people that got pulled was no more. No wand, no cape, no nothing. Not even a scrap was left of the victims. Nobody dared say a thing.

**Stay tuned and review!**


	2. Chapter 1: Setting Up Camp

**Chapter 1: Lost!**

**Disclaimers: The Familiar of Zero and all other references aren't mine.**

"Okay, NOW where are we?" Joshua grumbled. Indeed, it can be quite annoying to get lost three times in one day. Even more so crossing three dimensions in said day. It also didn't help that all of his fellow lost people are unconscious. Seeing that no one replied to him, he started to get something done. Not that they could anyway.

"Alrighty then. First step, gather your data…" He then looked around. The surroundings seems to be a mix of a temperate forest and a rainforest. While the trees are quite plentiful and do provide a lot of shade, there was also a lot of room down here, with rocks and some other small crevices scattered randomly, complete with grass carpeting the topsoil. An occasional critter tumbles through the ground, one looked like a medium-dog-sized brown rabbit being chased by a horse-sized red-maned warthog , though it didn't look like it was actually trying to eat said rabbit. While he was walking towards the group from the high ground he stepped on earlier, he heard a nearby creek gush it's waters towards a nearby river.

"Perfect." He rubbed his hands and smiled. While he is no expert on history, he did know for sure that all major civilizations in the world, in his world at least, started around rivers. While they may or may not stay here permanently, having a place to sleep for tonight is best.

"Phew. Would be a big help if at least one of these people are awake…" He said as he avoided stepping on some green toadstool. As he made his way, he originally planned to wake up Angelo, but the situation was…complicated, to say the least. Lying on top of him are two girls, namely one with blonde hair and rolls, the other one with flowing pink hair. They were positioned in such a way that trying to wake Angelo will also rouse the other two. So he looked on to the others and did a human head count while he was at it. One, two, four, seven…eight, eight people in total, with five girls and three boys, including himself. Also there were some creatures that he guessed were the familiars of those wearing the robes, who he also guessed are supposed to be the mages. It was quite fortunate that the Brimir guy and the other person called Angelo and him in for a tidbit of info, or else he would have been totally stumped right now, though he wishes he could've at least known the robe person's identity. Looking over to the animals, he can see a relatively large mole, a surprisingly normal-looking orange frog, a red salamander straight out of a RPG game that reminded him of a certain Pokemon, and a blue dragon, though this one looks quite harmless when you compare them to the generic Western serpent. The thought of having a dragon as a companion tingled his animal-loving spine. Who would've thought that in all his dreaming, he'll actually be able to spend some time and befriend a real, true-to-life dragon! That is, if it doesn't eat, nay, devour him first. As for the remaining people, there's a blue-haired petite girl, a voluptuous redhead with tanned skin like him, a green-haired woman looking around her early twenties, and finally a blond-haired Don Juan-esque trollop. He really didn't want to judge books by their covers, but he can already sense the headache the fop will cause him. Sighing once again, he resigned himself to his fate and started thinking on how to get them beside the river. His mind drifted back to the maned wild hog earlier. From what he had seen earlier, this world seems to have a similarity to his, although it is quite magical. In that case, thinking that trolls and other dangerous creatures might be lurking around is certainly valid. Then again, danger is subjective. What's dangerous to the ant is but of little concern to an elephant, so to say. There are also cases in mythology where supposedly dangerous and vicious mythological creatures become helpful, and vice versa. Still, he didn't want to risk it. What's more, the sun is already starting it's descent to the mountains, and being this vulnerable at night is just plain suicide, especially since they are in a place completely unknown. Thinking of all these things, he sighed heavily, a bit distressed with the situation.

"Of all people…why me?" He moaned to the wind. Groaning, he decided on which to do first: Secure a location to build a makeshift shelter, or carry them all to the riverside so that there'll be less hassle in moving them later? What should he—

"Mn…Munya…" He heard a soft, mumbling sound from the direction of the pinky. Damn, did it surprise him. Quite enough to temporarily break his chain of thought.

"Who the hell mumbles 'munyaa' in their sleep anyway?" He grumbled to himself as he decided in the favor of securing an area, though he'd like to hide the others somehow first. Looking around for a few minutes, he finally found a nearby place sufficiently packed with shrubs that are considerably close together and are also somewhat beast-free. As he was roaming around in search for an amply sized cave, he face-palmed at himself for being such a whiner. Normally, he isn't like this, but barring saints, who the hell wouldn't complain at such a situation?

"_Mental note to self – minimize whining."_ He nodded to himself. After another few minutes, he finally reached the creek. It's a bit larger than the other creeks he has seen, roughly twice the size of the norm, though not big enough to be an actual river. Unlike most of the natural bodies of water back to his home world, this one's crystal clear, so clear that it's as if looking at a perfectly made glass. He pondered on whether drinking it was safe to drink. Give or take, the last time he drank something that was actually meant to be drunk was around one o' clock while as of now the sky looked around five to five-thirty, and with the blistering heat of the equatorial Sun's blaze, his throat is starting to feel like the Sahara desert. Come to think of it, he did see three containers of water near the green-head…

Meanwhile, a certain bluenette started stirring from her slumber, "portal lag" still permeating her being. She nearly got hit by a branch, but luckily her small frame saved her from another round of involuntary unconsciousness. With great care, she freed herself of the miniscule stiff sticks and leaves that the brush covered her with. As she stood up and looked around, she realized one thing.

They were lost.

For one, she didn't recognize this area. To compare, if she ever got lost in the forests of Halkeginia or Gallia, she's a hundred percent sure to find her way back. While some of the flora are familiar, the place is still too different. She tried to recall what happened prior to her loss of consciousness. After a few seconds of mulling, she recalled the Familiar Summoning Ritual. Immediately, she searched for her new dragon. Thankfully, she found her by the nearby brush. As she pulled out the blue familiar, she heard a shuffling sound from down the slope. She then picked up her staff and prepared for trouble. What she didn't expect is another teenager male that looked around sixteen. His expression shouted exhaustion as he huffed and puffed. This one doesn't seem to be a threat, though she still kept her staff to herself just in case. The person was wearing somewhat strange clothing, but nevertheless she can see that this person can't use magic.

"_? ? ?" _The plebeian spoke a few seconds after staring at her. His tone was questioning, yet more of concern rather than demand.

"? ? ? ? ?" The plebeian spoke again in a language she can't understand. Deciding on a translation spell, she thought for a bit before chanting the spell, waving her staff in the air.

"Understand?" Tabitha asked. Unlike most of her fellow nobles, she wasn't hostile to plebeians.

"Yep. Could've sworn you spoke French earlier though…" He said, scratching his head. "Anyways, are you alright?"

Tabitha nodded in response. Seeing that this person has been awake for quite some time, she wanted to ask if he knew here they were. Thinking for a one-syllable statement, she finally said…

"Location?" She muttered almost inaudibly.

"Ah, I really don't know. Oops, the sun is setting. Gotta finish all this work. May I ask for your help, Miss…?" He nearly forgot that he was speaking with someone who is accustomed to Medieval France's traditions.

"Tabitha." And with that, she nodded. She put out her palm just before Joshua turned around, asking him to wait. After that, she tried to awaken her familiar. Emphasis on tried. Though she was unable to awaken her new dragon, she was able to confirm that it is still alive. Standing up, she finally nodded and followed the plebeian. Joshua then led her to the creek and said…

"Alright then. See that cave over there? Since night's about to fall, I thought on staying there for the night. However, I need your help on some things." He said as he filled the containers with water. Tabitha raised her brows in curiosity.

"Yeah, so…Firstly, I already checked out that cave over there and removed the fallen leaves inside. No monster within, which makes things easier. Now, I need to collect some firewood. If it's okay with you, can you perhaps move the rest inside the cave?" He asked as he gave Tabitha a container of water. She nodded once again and went back to where the rest were still sleeping. As she disappeared into the lush, Joshua thought about her for a bit. The Tabitha girl. She was cute, definitely. Probably the cutest among the women for him. Then again, she's unnaturally quiet. It's as if…nah, just, no. Whatever it is, he needs to observe her for a while before making a verdict. She's just that damn good at hiding her emotions. And here he thought he was good at disconnecting his brain from his heart.

"_Interesting, interesting. Just as interesting as that dragon. Meh, this'll have to come later. First things first."_ He snapped back to himself as he roamed on to get some firewood.

XXX

Louise woke up to the sound of something crackling. She's pretty sure that she put out the candle lights before bed so she tried to sit up, but her neck suddenly hurt. Real bad.

"Ow…" As she looked forward, it seemed that she was in a cave. She'd like to turn her head around, her neck hurts every time she tries to look at a different direction from forward. Realizing that she is on the floor, she began the tedious process of getting up from the stone floor with a horrifyingly painful stiff neck. Finally having stood up, Louise can see Kirche's red hair reflect the fire from outside the cave she was in. Above her, the cave ceiling arched out in a reverse bowl-like shape, with small stalactites hanging from them. It was also very dry yet cool. The size was also quite small, being just a few inches taller than her, and since she was quite short, that's not too much vertical space to consider. At the very end of the cave, the fire's bright light dimmed out to reveal some collected firewood. Though none were bigger than her forearm, there were a sure whole lot of them, enough to ensure their light and warmth until the sun rises.

Outside, there are two people awake. Tabitha, and another person that she didn't know. The bluenette's dragon familiar was there as well, sitting behind her "big sister". Beside the stranger was some small, sharp stones and two containers of water, though they seem to be empty. They were situated a few feet just outside the cave, with a two, small, makeshift torches bordered the terra firma entrance. It seems that they are talking about something as a certain blue reptile stared at the cooking pot over the flame. The creature's blazing appetite is practically all over it's eyes, it's mouth almost salivating. It's owner however is more focused on the stranger, and based from their movements, it looks like they're discussing something. She tried to look around, but everyone else is asleep. Looking back at the trio, she then remembered the Ritual and realized that she summoned no familiar. Sobbing to herself, she tried to muffle her noise, but to no avail as the stranger and Tabitha went to her.

"Everything alright? C'mon, we can talk there." He said, pointing towards the fire just outside the cave. After a bit more persuasion, Louise finally gave in and followed them, sitting on the right side of the stranger, with Tabitha on the far side, facing her. As the pinkette sat on the log, she saw the stranger pull out his glasses from his pocket. Tabitha then looked at it and asked.

"Glasses?" She said as she studied it from afar. The boy, having sensed his seatmate's curiosity, handed it over to her for some further research.

"Yeah. Kinda lost it when we got sucked in the portal and I found it just an hour ago, so I washed and fixed it." He explained. Wait, portal?

"Portal? What do you mean portal?" Louise questioned quite loudly. After all, one moment they were in the Magical Academy of Halkeginia, and now she wakes up inside a cave? She deserves an explanation! Or so she thought.

"Yep, portal. Got sucked right in. Just before that light nova." He continued. Suddenly, the thought hit her.

"EEEEEEEEEEEEHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH?!"

**Stay tuned and review!**


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